I have an A/C company on a maintenance contract and part of the contract is that they'll inspect not only the A/C but the electrical and plumbing for the house. Their prices are comically and insanely high so all they need is to do 1 thing to pay for the inspections.....anyway a couple of things that were written up I need to ask you Home Baw experts about.

1 - the water pressure to the house was measured at 110 PSI (the company's reading) but I had the water county water dept. come out and they measured it at 95 PSI. Now PVC is good up to about 140 PSI but that number will decrease as the PVC ages. Question: would you guys install a pressure reducing valve to bring the water pressure down it around 80 PSI or no? I know too much pressure is bad but is 95 or 110 bad enough.

2 - the next one seems bullshitty to me. He took the cover off the electrical panel and the ends of all the wires had a black soot on them. He said it could be either from "Chinese" drywall (it isn't) or from methane gas seeping in. He "recommends" them replacing everything in the panel box; I won't tell you how much the company wanted to save me from extinction but stupidly high doesn't quite describe it. Anyone ever experience anything like this......the black soot from methane gas?

TIA

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Posted by mdomingue

Lafayette, LA

Member since Nov 2010

43148 posts

Posted on 8/19/24 at 10:03 am to Wtodd

quote:
Now PVC is good up to about 140 PSI but that number will decrease as the PVC ages.

What diameter and schedule pipe are you using? Schedule 40 1-inch PVC is rated for 450 PSI working pressure. However, the Universal Plumbing Code does call for 80 PSI as the maximum pressure for the water supply entering your house. It is no coincidence the pressure-reducing valves come standard at 80 PSI. It is probably worth doing though I am uncertain how much they plan to charge you for that.

quote:
2 - the next one seems bullshitty to me. He took the cover off the electrical panel and the ends of all the wires had a black soot on them. He said it could be either from "Chinese" drywall (it isn't) or from methane gas seeping in. He "recommends" them replacing everything in the panel box; I won't tell you how much the company wanted to save me from extinction but stupidly high doesn't quite describe it. Anyone ever experience anything like this......the black soot from methane gas?

Did he give you pictures? This one sounds pretty suspect to me as well. If there is off-gassing, not necessarily methane, there may be corrosion but not soot. There is no need to change the panel unless there is substantial corrosion. The solution is to find what the source is or was that caused this and remove it if it is even still there. Something would have to have burned or at least smoked to cause soot.

Just my two cents.

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Posted by doubleb

Baton Rouge

Member since Aug 2006

41900 posts

Posted on 8/19/24 at 10:47 am to Wtodd

60 pounds of water pressure on as house is good. 110 pounds makes no sense. Are you having issues?

Fwiw, if the pvc was installed correctly then it should hold the 110 pound pressure.

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Posted by Wtodd

Tampa, FL

Member since Oct 2013

68474 posts

Posted on 8/19/24 at 11:33 am to doubleb

I'm replying to both of you

quote:
Did he give you pictures?

I saw it and the soot would come off pretty easy on your finger like a fine powder.

quote:
110 pounds makes no sense.

Like I said it was the company's measuring gauge and I did see it measure to 110 just like I saw the water department's measure at 95.

quote:
Are you having issues?

No HOWEVER I do know high water pressure can be a problem. In my other house in FL (Lake County) each house in my subdivision should have had a pressure reducing valve installed during construction but the cheap bastard that built my house didn't install one; the result was it blew the pressure relief valve off the top of my water heater. The city reimbursed me because they missed the contractor not installing the pressure reducing valve during inspection and the city ended up installing one. The water department here won't install one and I probably won't get reimbursed for it but I will make them say no.

quote:
if the pvc was installed correctly then it should hold the 110 pound pressure.

Well it has worked for 14 years but I can't tell you if the pressure has been that high the entire time. It probably has but there's no way to know.

Thanks

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Posted by LSUDad

Still on the move

Member since May 2004

61972 posts

Posted on 8/19/24 at 10:12 pm to Wtodd

I'd place a water regulator, 60 psi is more than enough.